freemarket: saving your time, sanity and money

But what about the more abstract benefits for SMEs using our straightforward currency exchange platform? Read on to discover how freemarket can drastically cut back on the man-hours hoovered up by arranging and chasing up FX payments, along with the stress and frustration that usually accompanies being ripped off.

TIMEPerhaps you have heard the phrase ‘time is money’, as coined in Benjamin Franklin’s 1748 letter exploring the idea of opportunity cost, Advice to a young Tradesman.

“He that can earn Ten Shillings a Day by his Labour, and goes abroad, or sits idle one half of that Day, tho’ he spends but Sixpence during his Diversion or Idleness, ought not to reckon That the only Expence; he has really spent or rather thrown away Five Shillings besides.”

Likewise, he that can earn Ten Shillings a Day by his Labour, but instead spends half of that day trying to get a straight answer from a bank or broker on what rate and fee he will be charged for his currency exchange, half of the next day calling up trying to establish when the funds will be paid, then half of the next week kicking himself for stepping willingly into an inescapable web of red tape… well, that guy has thrown away something like 45 Shillings (feel free to adjust this figure for inflation).

freemarket offers same-delivery of funds on all major currencies, while big banks like HSBC can take up to two weeks to execute transactions. Our lean business model allows us to operate much more nimbly than major institutions encumbered by bureaucracy, and allows you to not sit around fretting over when your payments will be made; schedule a transaction with freemarket in the morning and it will be executed at midday that same day.

SANITYPerhaps you have been confused at times by the wide variety of rates and fees on offer from currency exchange services. More likely than not, this was the result of a bank or broker deliberately obfuscating the terms of your FX transaction so as to better disguise their hidden fees. This is simply impossible with freemarket. Our fee is flat, our rates are outrageously competitive, and our customers have complete control over their own currency exchanges. Our easy-to-use online platform allows customers – once registered – to schedule and manage their payments in a matter of minutes.Essentially, we have eliminated the unpleasant experience of shopping around for the best deal, along with the tedious and often bewildering back-and-forth of hardball negotiations with banks and brokers. Because we are completely upfront about our fees and rates, our account managers are free to concentrate on nothing more than making our customers’ currency exchanges as quick, painless and inexpensive as possible.

MONEYPerhaps you’ve heard us mention our fixed 0.2% fee before. Perhaps you’ve heard about the unbeatable access we provide to institutional rates. Perhaps you’ve heard you can save up to 75% on your FX fees with freemarket. No need to keep repeating ourselves.

James is freemarket’s Chief Commercial Officer. He has a history of finding new ways to solve age-old financial challenges and was responsible for launching some of the first online money transfer and prepaid card initiatives in Europe.